


Coleoptera

by hamlets_ghost



Category: Dishonored (Video Games)
Genre: Gen, Mental Instability, mention of suicidal thoughts, mentions of torture, post-DH2, post-DH2 (low chaos)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:42:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24322984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hamlets_ghost/pseuds/hamlets_ghost
Summary: “I am drawing the beetles.”Anton looked at the drawings and they are indeed of the beetles. Each different species drawn in detail, with small arrows pointing at some of the defining features. On the side of the paper there were formulae that Anton could recognize as formulae used for calculating flight speed and wind resistance, but they were somewhat half-finished and some of them corrected or scratched over multiple times.
Relationships: Anton sokolov & Kirin Jindosh
Comments: 12
Kudos: 35





	Coleoptera

Anton stepped through the door and sighed. Last time he had been here, it had been less walking and more getting dragged through the hallways in handcuffs. There had been some yelling and swearing from him side as he was dragged towards the room where Kirin Jindosh had wanted to meet with him.

  
It was not the first time he had been abducted, but he’d been younger then, and it took less out of him. His stay at Jindosh’ had not been long thanks to Corvo, but it had not been pleasant. He knew Jindosh from before; when he was a quiet but clever kid at the Academy, mind obviously sharper than most. It had been a shame when he was banned, but Anton had not been surprised. Great minds like that often scare people, he had seen it before with Piero, and Jindosh was even more cold towards people than Piero had been. Curious, but apathetic, which made him dangerous to have around. And instead of admitting they didn’t know how to handle him, the Academy threw him out as to not sully their own reputation.   
  
Anton had been surprised when he had met Jindosh again. He was nothing like the kid he had known; he was louder, surer of himself and much more unstable. He had adapted, but to what Anton could only guess. Anton had given him nothing, and in the end, Jindosh had gotten angry enough to use more aggressive methods to pressure him into cooperating. Methods that Anton could still feel the result of when he moved.  
  
Corvo said he had dealt with Jindosh, and Anton believed him. But he had also seen the way Corvo would check the news, frowning at whatever his spies would tell him about the inventor. In the end Corvo had asked Anton to check up on him, and who was Anton to deny his savior?  
  
So there he was, back in the mansion, except it was quieter now. The walls were not moving, and there were no people around. The clockwork soldiers were also gone, and the only person he had met so far was a polite maid that had opened the door for him and said that they had been expecting him. Corvo had warned them about his arrival and there was a room ready for him if he needed it.  
  
He was led down the long hallways to where he assumed Jindosh’s room must be, since it was the only logical conclusion. The maid turned to him just before he opened the door she had pointed out to him.  
  
“Be careful with him, please,” she said in a hushed tone. “He is not what he used to be, and it sometimes makes him sad.”  
  
Anton gave her a confused nod, not really understanding what that was supposed to mean. He had some guesses though, none of which were nice to think about.

Stepping into the room, he could not help but marvel at the design. Jindosh may have been many things, but Aton couldn’t help but admit that the man knew his craft. Said man was sitting at the table, scratching something down on a piece of paper. In front of him were three glasses filled with different kind of beetles, flying around and into the glass with small _thunk_ sounds.  
  
Jindosh himself made Anton feel overdressed. He was wearing a pair of soft looking pants, a dress shirt that was unbuttoned at the top and ruffled from moving it too much, and no shoes.

  
He didn’t seem to have noticed Anton entering, so he walked slowly up to the man, clearing his throat.  
  
“Jindosh?”  
  
Jindosh’s hand stopped moving and he turned slightly so he could look at Anton. He looked… less tired, which Anton supposed was a good thing, but he also looked so wide-eyed and confused, which made Anton frown.  
  
“Jindosh, I expect the Lord Protector told you I would arrive, yes?”  
  
Jindosh looked at him, tilting his head lightly. “I know you, right?”  
  
Anton stopped walking towards the other, and froze. That was… not what he had expected. Again, Corvo had hinted at what he had done, but _this_ Anton was not ready for.  
  
“You do, yes,” he said, calmly, ignoring the taste of bile rising up in his throat, “Anton Sokolov. I was your teacher at the Academy for a period, and I also saw you… not too long ago.”  
  
One month. One month was all that had passed between Delilah’s defeat and now. And from the look of it, Jindosh had not spent too much time thinking about that or thinking about anything in general. He had red marks that looked like they were fading into scars by his temples covered slightly by his now longer, more messy hair. Anton was not stupid. He could very much conclude what had happened from the evidence laid bare in front of him. He swallowed heavily, and walked to the table, leaning up against it, eyes still on Jindosh.  
  
“Do you remember that?”  
  
Jindosh looked thoughtful, looking at Anton as if he was the greatest mystery in the world.  
  
“Do you know much about beetles?”  
  
Anton was a little taken aback by the question, not really expecting it. “I suppose I know a little.”  
  
At that Jindosh smiled. It was a different smile than the ones he had seen before, when Jindosh had showed off his clockwork soldiers. Then it had been filled with pride and something a little unhinged. This smile was pure happiness, and that somehow scared him more.  
  
“What are you working on?” Anton said instead, deciding that _no, Jindosh did not remember him nor that he had abducted him. Not even Jindosh was that good of an actor._

Jindosh pushed the papers towards him, still smiling. “I am drawing the beetles.”  
  
Anton looked at the drawings and they are indeed of the beetles. Each different species drawn in detail, with small arrows pointing at some of the defining features. On the side of the paper there were formulae that Anton could recognize as formulae used for calculating flight speed and wind resistance, but they were somewhat half-finished and some of them corrected or scratched over multiple times.  
  
“That is some very detailed drawings,” he said quietly. “Good job.”  
  
Jindosh beamed at him, pointing at one of the containers. “Those are my favorite. They are red when the light hits them correctly.”  
  
Anton nodded, looking not at the beetles but at Jindosh instead. Jindosh was not a good person, he knew that. He had seen his creations and his intentions with them had been nothing but immoral, but Anton couldn’t help but compare the clockwork soldiers to his own tallboys. He had created weapons for a corrupt system once too, and he had been given a second chance. At the time he had also been working on a cure to the plague, which may have earned him some points in Corvo’s book – and the fact that he had known him from before and that he had known Jessamine would probably also have helped him there – but in so many ways he could place himself in Jindosh’s shoes. A brilliant mind, in a world where they were sometimes feared more than loved. He had seen if with Piero too, when he had been kicked out of the Academy, but Piero had been lucky enough to have been on the right side in the coup. Unlike him. Unlike Jindosh.  
  
Jindosh’s wasn’t wearing shoes now, though, and his mind was not what it had been either. That much Anton was sure of, and he didn’t know if he should laugh or cry. He didn’t know what he had been expecting when he stepped into the mansion, but he was sure it wasn’t this.

  
His chest felt heavy and achy when he placed a hand on Jindosh’s shoulder, trying to get his attention again, from where he was staring at the beetles with so much awe in his eyes.  
  
“How are you doing?” he tried to sound calm, but his heart was beating hard and fast in his chest. “Are you okay here?”  
  
“I am good. The maid takes me into the garden each morning to catch beetles. I like that. When you pluck their legs off, they fly more. Did you know that?” Jindosh said, sounding very far away. “There are ways to calculate that. I am pretty sure that you have to use the surface area of the beetles and with the weight and gravity constant…”  
  
He trailed off, looking more confused now. So he does remember something, which was good news... maybe.  
  
“I don’t… I don’t remember. This is simple physics, I – I should know this,” Jindosh looked way less calm then, and Anton placed a hand on his other shoulder, so he could turn him around to face him in the chair. Jindosh was shaking. “Why… why don’t I know that?”  
  
He looked at Anton again, something like fear and confusion in his way too wide eyes, and Anton was very much sure he wanted to cry then.  
  
“It’s okay. Forgetting stuff is normal, and maybe you will remember later,” Anton said, knowing that Jindosh probably wouldn’t.  
  
“This is wrong,” Jindosh continued, as if he hadn’t heard Anton speak, “this…I don’t want this anymore. I don’t… Can you kill me?”  
  
Jindosh was looking at him with so much intensity and honesty in his eyes that Anton had to take a step back. That was even more unexpected. Again, he could understand. If he was in Jindosh’s position, he would probably also wish death upon himself. He prided himself on his sharp mind, and he knew Jindosh did the same.  
  
“You are fine,” Anton said. “I am sure everything will turn out fine. Do you want to show me your beetles? I am sure we can persuade the maid to let us into the garden to catch more.”  
  
Jindosh’s posture changed completely, and he was smiling again. “Yes, that would be nice,” he said with the same empty, half far away tone as before.  
  
“Let’s find you some shoes and we can do that.”  
  
Anton had planned to stay here no more than a day at most, but maybe he could make it a week. It was not that he felt guilty about this - he was sure he did not feel guilt anymore. Not with the things he had done - but seeing Jindosh like this hurt. He would not be able to explain this to anyone, he was sure of that… maybe with the exception of Piero, but he was dead now, so Anton would have to carry this himself.   
He wouldn’t be able to help Jindosh, it was too late for that. But he could be there for a while and talk about beetles, and if Jindosh remembered anything else he could calm him down. It was the least he could do, really, he thought as they walked through the garden, Jindosh showing him the best places to catch beetles.   
  
Anton had never been an emotional person, but the ache he felt in his chest every time he looked at Jindosh was very much there. So he would be there too. Just for a while at least.  
  
Beetles were very pretty to look at anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing for DH even though I have loved the game for a long, long time. I blame the amazing discord server I am on. I love you all <33


End file.
